This is not exactly the result that disappointed Avatar fans were expecting.

THIS is not exactly the result that disappointed Avatar fans were expecting.

Oscar voters passed over the top-grossing film of all time, and instead gave Best Picture to The Hurt Locker, which sold the fewest tickets of any Best Picture winner in academy history.

The academy also made history by choosing Kathryn Bigelow of The Hurt Locker as the first woman ever to win the Oscar for Best Director - over her ex-husband, Avatar director James Cameron.

Avatar and Cameron seemed unbeatable in January after winning at the Golden Globes and becoming a genuine international cultural phenomenon.

Director Kathryn Bigelow attends the 82 Annual Academy Awards Governor's Ball

But experts say the film's Oscar campaign failed to capitalize on its momentum and allowed the flick to get swamped in the inevitable backlash.

Avatar was widely mocked by the chattering classes for being derivative. A lightly revised script for the Disney cartoon Pocahontas, underlining the similarities between the two films, circulated through the blogosphere.

Meanwhile, the film's campaigners pushed unsuccessfully to get a Best Supporting Actress nomination for Zoe Saldana, who appears in the film only in animated form.

"The campaign was overly defensive, focusing too much on convincing the voters that the motion-capture performances were real acting," said a veteran Oscar consultant.

"Instead, they should have emphasized on what a game-changer Avatar is for the way movies will be made."

It probably did not help that many Oscar voters still remember Cameron's boastful "king of the world" speech from the night when his Titanic won 11 Oscars in 1998.

So Oscar voters continued the recent trend of embracing small, art-house flicks such as The Hurt Locker.

Ratings up

Preliminary data from the Walt Disney Co.shows the Oscar telecast enjoyed a big ratings jump from recent years, though the company conceded that current comparisons may not be proven accurate.

Disney said the Sunday telecast on its ABC network - in which the small, independent film The Hurt Locker went toe-to-toe against box-office goliath Avatar and won six Oscars, including best picture and best director - scored a 26.5 household rating and 40 share in 56 key markets.

The household rating, which measures the percentage of all homes watching the Oscars, appears to be up sharply from the 20.6 reported last year, when Slumdog Millionaire won best picture. And the 40 share, or the percentage of all TVs turned on that are tuned to the broadcast, compares with 31 last year.

Disney officials pointed out that ratings monitor Nielsen Co. has changed its methodology and so year-to-year comparisons are unavailable in the metered markets. Further, last year's numbers are final, while the current figures only show highly populous markets, where ratings tend to be higher for Oscar telecasts.

The five highest-rated markets are Chicago; West Palm Beach, Fla.; Boston; Kansas City; and San Francisco.

The network said more comprehensive figures were due out later Monday.

Still, the numbers could prove to be a boon for both the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, sponsor of the Oscars, as well as Disney, if the figures hold up. The academy had expanded its list of best-picture nominees to 10 from five in an effort to generate greater interest.

The telecast was helped by the fact that Avatar, which is now the all-time box-office champ with more than $2.5 billion in worldwide receipts, was one of the best-picture finalists and had garnered nine nominations in all.

THE Hurt Locker director Kathryn Bigelow has won the Oscar for best director, becoming the 1st woman ever to achieve the top honor at Academy Awareds

THE Hurt Locker director Kathryn Bigelow has won the Oscar for best director, becoming the first woman ever to achieve the top honor at the Academy Awards.

Bigelow and her film, The Hurt Locker, also won the gong for Best Picture, making it clear that the film about a bomb disposal crew working in Baghdad was the night's big winner

The final tally was six awards to The Hurt Locker and three to James Cameron's Avatar.

Best Actor went to sentimental favorite Jeff Bridges for his role in Crazy Heart, while Sandra Bullock made it a best-and-worst double in 24 hours with an Oscar for her role in The Blind Side to match the Razzie she collected for All About Steve.

The 82nd annual awards had opened with the five best actor and five best actress nominees emerging from the back of the stage.

Surprisingly last year's Emmys host Neil Patrick Harris then burst onto the stage in a black sequined jacket.

"I know! What am I doing here?" he exclaimed before bursting into a Broadway-style musical piece complete with dancing girls.

First-time host Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, hosting the awards for the third time, dropped from the ceiling in a mechanical platform surrounded by angels.

As is traditional with the opening monologue the comedy duo saved most of their ammunition for a select few actors, with Meryl Streep among this year's lucky recipients.

George Clooney joked with the hosts by appearing to scowl whenever they mentioned his name.

They explained that 6000 members of the Academy submit their votes for the awards and "no matter what they nominated Meryl Streep".

Martin said Streep has the most nominations of any person in Oscars history, with 16, "or as I like to think of it 'most losses'".

Baldwin said Invictus, which stars best actor nominee Morgan Freeman and best supporting actor nominee Matt Damon, combined two of Martin's favourite passion

"Rugby and tensions between blacks and whites," Baldwin said, straight-faced.

After spotting The Hurt Locker director Kathryn Bigelow, nominated for best director alongside ex-husband James Cameron, Martin quipped: "She was so pleased to be nominated with him (Cameron) she sent him a gift basket with a timer."

"He reciprocated by sending her a Toyota," Baldwin joked.

The first major award of the night went to Austrian Christoph Waltz who was named best supporting actor for his role in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds.

Waltz, who was a relative unknown even in his own country before the film was released, played a sinister Nazi officer with a talent for seeking out people in hiding.

He paid tribute to both director Tarantino and co-star Brad Pitt in his acceptance speech.

Over the past year, Waltz has garnered every major film prize, from the best actor award in Cannes to the Screen Actors Guild award, the Golden Globe, the British BAFTA and now the Oscar.

Best supporting actress went to Mo’Nique in Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire – with the Oprah-endorsed film also picking the gong for best adapted screenplay by Geoffrey Fletcher.

Mo’Nique, who won the Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild Award and BAFTA for her role as an abusive mother of a pregnant teen in Precious, received a standing ovation as she took to the stage to collect her award.

The 42-year-old comedienne paid tribute to Oprah Winfrey, who was one of the film’s producers, and her husband Sidney who is also her manager.

82nd ACADEMY AWARDS (awards in alphabetical order)

Actor in a Leading Role
** Jeff Bridges in Crazy Heart
George Clooney in Up in the Air
Colin Firth in A Single Man
Morgan Freeman in Invictus
Jeremy Renner in The Hurt Locker

Actor in a Supporting Role
Matt Damon in Invictus
Woody Harrelson in The Messenger
Christopher Plummer in The Last Station
Stanley Tucci in The Lovely Bones
** Christoph Waltz in Inglourious Basterds

Actress in a Leading Role
** Sandra Bullock in The Blind Side
Helen Mirren in The Last Station
Carey Mulligan in An Education
Gabourey Sidibe in Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
Meryl Streep in Julie & Julia

Actress in a Supporting Role
Penélope Cruz in Nine
Vera Farmiga in Up in the Air
Maggie Gyllenhaal in Crazy Heart
Anna Kendrick in Up in the Air
** Mo’Nique in Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire

Animated Feature Film
Coraline Henry Selick
Fantastic Mr. Fox Wes Anderson
The Princess and the Frog John Musker and Ron Clements
The Secret of Kells Tomm Moore
** Up Pete Docter

Art Direction
** Avatar Art Direction: Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg; Set Decoration: Kim Sinclair
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus Art Direction: Dave Warren and Anastasia Masaro; Set Decoration: Caroline Smith
Nine Art Direction: John Myhre; Set Decoration: Gordon Sim
Sherlock Holmes Art Direction: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer
The Young Victoria Art Direction: Patrice Vermette; Set Decoration: Maggie Gray

Cinematography
** Avatar Mauro Fiore
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Bruno Delbonnel
The Hurt Locker Barry Ackroyd
Inglourious Basterds Robert Richardson
The White Ribbon Christian Berger

Costume Design
Bright Star Janet Patterson
Coco before Chanel Catherine Leterrier
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus Monique Prudhomme
Nine Colleen Atwood
** The Young Victoria Sandy Powell

Directing
Avatar James Cameron
** The Hurt Locker Kathryn Bigelow
Inglourious Basterds Quentin Tarantino
Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire Lee Daniels
Up in the Air Jason Reitman

Documentary (Feature)
Burma VJ Anders Østergaard and Lise Lense-Møller
** The Cove Louie Psihoyos and Fisher Stevens
Food, Inc. Robert Kenner and Elise Pearlstein
The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith
Which Way Home Rebecca Cammisa

Documentary (Short Subject)
China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province Jon Alpert and Matthew O’Neill
The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner Daniel Junge and Henry Ansbacher
The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert
** Music by Prudence Roger Ross Williams and Elinor Burkett
Rabbit à la Berlin Bartek Konopka and Anna Wydra

Film Editing
Avatar Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua and James Cameron
District 9 Julian Clarke
** The Hurt Locker Bob Murawski and Chris Innis
Inglourious Basterds Sally Menke
Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire Joe Klotz

Foreign Language Film
Ajami Israel
The Milk of Sorrow (La Teta Asustada) Peru
A Prophet (Un Prophète) France
** The Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos) Argentina
The White Ribbon (Das Weisse Band) Germany

Music (Original Score)
Avatar James Horner
Fantastic Mr. Fox Alexandre Desplat
The Hurt Locker Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders
Sherlock Holmes Hans Zimmer
** Up Michael Giacchino

Music (Original Song)
Almost There from The Princess and the Frog Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
Down in New Orleans from The Princess and the Frog Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
Loin de Paname from Paris 36 Music by Reinhardt Wagner Lyric by Frank Thomas
Take It All from Nine Music and Lyric by Maury Yeston
** The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart) from Crazy Heart Music and Lyric by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett

Best Picture
Avatar James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers
The Blind Side Gil Netter, Andrew A. Kosove and Broderick Johnson, Producers
District 9 Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, Producers
An Education Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers
** The Hurt Locker Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier and Greg Shapiro, Producers
Inglourious Basterds Lawrence Bender, Producer
Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, Producers
A Serious Man Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Producers
Up Jonas Rivera, Producer
Up in the Air Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, Producers

Short Film (Animated)
French Roast Fabrice O. Joubert
Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty Nicky Phelan and Darragh O’Connell
The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte) Javier Recio Gracia
** Logorama Nicolas Schmerkin
A Matter of Loaf and Death Nick Park

Short Film (Live Action)
The Door Juanita Wilson and James Flynn
Instead of Abracadabra Patrik Eklund and Mathias Fjellström
Kavi Gregg Helvey
Miracle Fish Luke Doolan and Drew Bailey
** The New Tenants Joachim Back and Tivi Magnusson

Sound Editing
Avatar Christopher Boyes and Gwendolyn Yates Whittle
** The Hurt Locker Paul N.J. Ottosson
Inglourious Basterds Wylie Stateman
Star Trek Mark Stoeckinger and Alan Rankin
Up Michael Silvers and Tom Myers

Sound Mixing
Avatar Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson and Tony Johnson
** The Hurt Locker Paul N.J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett
Inglourious Basterds Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti and Mark Ulano
Star Trek Anna Behlmer, Andy Nelson and Peter J. Devlin
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers and Geoffrey Patterson

Visual Effects
** Avatar Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones
District 9 Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros and Matt Aitken
Star Trek Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh and Burt Dalton

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
District 9 Written by Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell
An Education Screenplay by Nick Hornby
In the Loop Screenplay by Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche
** Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire Screenplay by Geoffrey Fletcher
Up in the Air Screenplay by Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner

Writing (Original Screenplay)
** The Hurt Locker Written by Mark Boal
Inglourious Basterds Written by Quentin Tarantino
The Messenger Written by Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman
A Serious Man Written by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
Up Screenplay by Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom